Nov 30, 2010

At a dangal held in the memory of the great wrestler Anil Pahalwan, Deepak Ansuia Prasad finds some great wrestling on display in a beautiful village.

It was a sunny Sunday on the 21st of November. I was invited by Rajinder Pahalwan and Ajit Pahalwan to a dangal at Village Jauna Pur, held in the memory of late Anil Pahalwan who was a disciple of Guru Shyam Lal at Aya Nagar Akhara.

The village Jauna Pur lies on the outskirts of Southern Delhi, barely touching the satellite town of Gurgaon. The area is famous for posh farmhouses with beautiful gardens and huge villas, clubs and residences. It is also a sought-after place for wedding receptions, so there is a very festive atmosphere in the area. In the evenings you can see the wealthy people of the area visiting parties at the other farmhouses.

Haridas of Jauna Pur, whose son used to practice wrestling at village Aaya Nagar Akhara, and is also a wrestling fan, loved watching his son develop into a good wrestler. But his sudden demise brought them irrecoverable loss. Anil Pahalwan was a very good and aspiring wrestler who was so devoted to wrestling that his parents wanted him to be remembered most of all as a wrestler. Hence, in his loving memory, they hold the competition every year at village Jauna Pur with the help of the villagers, Aaya Nagar Akhara gurus, local councilors, local MLA and village head.

The venue for the dangal was the primary school at Village Jauna Pur.

The chief guests were:

MLA, Mehrauli, Delhi, Balram Tanwar from congress

BJP Councilor Ramesh Ambawat

BJP Councilor Kartar Singh

The councilor Kartar Singh paid Rs. 21000/- in prize money for the wrestlers.

Many wrestlers, including many juniors wrestlers, participated from different akharas of Delhi.
The main attractions of the dangal were the following matches between well-known wrestlers:

The Black King Cobra aka Kala Nag (in Hindi) was at his best. He choose a tough opponent. He is such a great wrestler that he never thinks twice about choosing his opponent. He finished his match within a minute or two by pinning his opponent.

The 5100/- bout of Rajinder Bhati was also an excellent match. They are both famous wrestlers and have great skill. Rajinder Bhati won the match, which captivated the spectators because each wrestler demonstrated great strength and technique.

Bhola Pahlwaan, who is a brother of Anil Pahalwan, was chosen to wrestle Azad, son of Rajinder Pahlwaan. They both wrestled well and the match seemed like it would be over as Azad Pahlwaan used a technique to nearly pin Bhola, but Bhola Pahlwaan escaped and managed to emerge the winner.

The son of Rajinder Pahlwaan had three matches: one with a wrestler of Guru Raju Rana Akhara, one with Bhola Pahlwaan, and one with Jeetu Pahlwaan. He lost all the bouts. It just was not his day. However, he was given a consolation prize after losing to Jeetu.

WELCOME

Most countries have a traditional style of wrestling. In India, wrestling takes place in a clay or dirt pit. The soil is mixed with ghee and other things and is tended to before each practice.

Traditional Indian wrestling isn't just a sport - it's an ancient subculture where wrestlers live and train together and follow strict rules on everything from what they can eat to what they can do in their spare time. Drinking, smoking and even sex are off limits. The focus is on living a pure life, building strength and honing their wrestling skills.

The purpose of this blog is to raise awareness about the sport and give people inside and outside of India a glimpse of what it is like.